The truth about a complex built for veterans and the middle class and how it has evolved through the years to become one of the more interesting and controversial of New York stories.

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Management has two priorities: 1) Making sure money is made, hence upgrading and filling up apartments is their goal. "Amenities" are important in selling the place, though few residents use them. 2) If someone needs medical attention, Public Safety will be there, if alerted.

Quality of life issues are not that important, however. Things like the carpet rule or outsider dogs. These "rules" tend to be ignored, on purpose it seems. So you will see a lot that isn't taken care of properly, and complaints will be met with a creative excuse and a smile.

"Peace and quiet" must be a cruel joke, though this property is sold that way. There can be no peace and quiet as ALL apartments must be upgraded, which includes the installation of an AC unit below the window. Aside from the continual construction about the neighborhood, there is a new and noisy subway extension being built along East 14 st and the shut down of the L line. "Choosing" to live in NYC, now the newest mantra, is a fabrication when the talk is of ST and PCV, which was traditionally quiet, with no construction noise.

Though money was always important, it is now more important than ever. Money rules many things, as you will find.

At this point, 30 years into living here and seeing many things, I can state that Management and their reps are BS-ing us. I can't say that loudly enough: We are being BS-ed. I don't see any genuine change, though the "selling" of this place is intense. Few of the "rules" will be enforced, as Management doesn't want to lose customers or potential customers. Where personal integrity is a hallmark of an excellent management style, this integrity is not seen in enforcing some of the rules.

About those "club cars" we see going this way and that way, and outside of Stuy Town or Peter Cooper Village:

Where are Chuckie Schumer and Carolyn Maloney?

Calling the huge collapse of the Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village deal "an opportunity," Sen. Chuck Schumer Sunday rallied hundreds of tenants pushing to keep the complex an affordable oasis. "This would seem like chaos, but there's a silver lining on this cloud," said Schumer (D-NY).

He and others are pressuring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,
the publicly chartered organizations that hold much of the $3 billion
mortgage on the complex, to ensure it is sold to an owner who will
promise to keep the apartments affordable.

Fannie and Freddie got huge taxpayer bailouts in 2008, and lawmakers aren't letting them forget it. State Senator Thomas Duane said they have an "obligation" to protect the tenants.

"Preserving
affordability is Fannie and Freddie's core mission. There are 25,000
tenants who are watching to make sure they don't cut and run on us now,"
said Councilman Daniel Garodnick, a Stuy Town resident.

As
tenants waved signs saying "save our homes" in the sunny cold at 18th
Street and 1st Ave, Schumer said, "a fight for Stuyvesant Town and Peter
Cooper Village goes far beyond these brick buildings. You can't have a
thriving New York City without a middle class."

Developers Tishman Speyer bought the 80-acre complex in 2006 for $5.4 billion - the largest real estate deal in US history - and planned to turn the rent-regulated flats into pricey luxury apartments.

They
ran into legal trouble and were smacked hard by the 2008 real estate
crash. Unable to pay the mortgage, they announced last week they were
giving up the keys and walking away.

Now, Garodnick said,
"Fannie and Freddie are in the driver's seat. They need to live up to
their charter mission. This isn't a property that can be flipped to the
highest bidder."

New York, NY – Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney joined with elected
officials, community leaders, and affordable housing advocates at a news
conference outside Stuyvesant Town to announce her introduction of
legislation in Congress, H.R. 5361, that will sharply curtail the
ability of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and other government-sponsored
enterprises (GSEs) to invest in future transactions that reduce the
availability of affordable housing both in New York and nationwide.
Representative Maloney was joined at the press conference by New York
City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio; Manhattan Borough President Scott
Stringer; NYS Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh; NYC Councilman Dan Garodnick;
Alvin Doyle, the President of the Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village
Tenants Association; and other consumer, housing and community
advocates.

GSEs like Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are mandated by the federal
government to help increase affordable housing. However, Fannie and
Freddie provided crucial liquidity for the purchase of Stuyvesant Town
and Peter Cooper Village, even though the buyers’ business plan relied
heavily on the use of aggressive tactics to convert rent-regulated
apartments to market rate housing. What’s more, Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac earned "affordable housing goals credits" by investing in the
Stuyvesant Town deal – despite the fact that the transaction did the
opposite of creating or preserving affordable housing.

Congresswoman Maloney’s bill, the “Responsible GSE Affordable Housing
Investment Act of 2010"(H.R. 5361), which has been cosponsored by New
York Reps. Jerrold Nadler, Nydia Velazquez, Gregory Meeks, and Yvette
Clarke, would require the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to deny
affordable housing goals credits when a project's debt is
disproportionate to its income – as was the case in the Stuyvesant
Town/Peter Cooper Village sale. The bill will also require the GSEs to
use the same standards for assessing their investments in the secondary
securities market as they would for direct investments for the purposes
of affordable housing goals credits, thus syncing the standards for
securities investments with those of direct investments. In addition,
Rep. Maloney and Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank this
week sent a letter to the Acting Director of the FHFA urging the Agency
to use its power to deny affordable housing goals credits for
multifamily loans that facilitate the conversion of units from
affordable to a higher market rate. A full copy of that letter is
attached.

“It’s outrageous that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac aided and abetted
efforts to slash New York’s stock of affordable housing. In the Stuy
Town deal, Fannie and Freddie got affordable housing goals credit where
no such credit was due – and for the good of our communities, that’s got
to stop,” said Congresswoman Maloney. “My bill will sharply curtail the
ability of Fannie, Freddie, and other GSEs to take part in transactions
that depend on converting housing to market rate. Today, we’re sending
the message to Fannie and Freddie that they should be investing in deals
that increase affordable housing. That's their stated mission -- and
they need to start living up to that mandate.”

Joining Representative Maloney at today’s news conference were
several elected officials, community activists, and advocates for
affordable housing. Among them were New York City Public Advocate Bill
de Blasio, who said, “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were created to
increase access to housing. When they funded an investment predicated on
eliminating affordable housing at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper
Village, they failed that goal. The government should stop Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac from investing in any development deals that will
threaten affordable housing. I applaud Congresswoman Maloney for
spearheading legislative efforts which will help protect tenants at Stuy
Town and Peter Cooper Village and throughout our city.”

More at the above link, but I did check to see what happened to this bill and found this:

NEW YORK, NY – Today, Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-Manhattan,
Queens) reacted to the $5.4 billion sale of Stuyvesant Town and Peter
Cooper Village to a joint venture of Tishman Speyer and BlackRock
Realty. Residents of Stuy Town and Peter Cooper, which are located in
Maloney’s district, have urged potential purchasers to preserve the
complexes’ stock of affordable housing.

“While I am disappointed that the Stuy Town/Peter Cooper Tenants
Association’s offer did not prevail, I’m glad that the complexes have
been sold to a New York firm. I congratulate Tishman Speyer and
BlackRock on their successful bid,” said Rep. Maloney.

“Representatives of Tishman Speyer assured me today that they don’t
intend to tear down the buildings or kick rent stabilized tenants out of
their homes.”

“I’m encouraged by Tishman Speyer’s promise not to make ‘a sudden or
dramatic shift in this neighborhood's make-up, character or charm.’
Stuy Town and Peter Cooper have a long and noble history of providing
affordable housing to New Yorkers. I urge Tishman Speyer to meet with
residents as quickly as possible to reassure them that it will keep
their rents affordable.”

65 comments:

Anonymous
said...

I listened very closely when Schumer called in to the TA meeting held about 1 1/2 years ago. He was at a restaurant in Astoria with his parents. He said: I'll support anything you decide on. He didn't say he supported the TA plan. He didn't even say who he supported. I assume he meant the tenants, not the TA. I assumed he saw the dangers in supporting Brookfield...so although his language seems casual, it was actually quite crafty. Like it or not, the ball is in our court.

We cannot support Fortress and Brookfield if we are to survive.We need to weed out those involved in backroom deals that have enabled Compass Rock / Fortress to destroy this community with destruction for its new construction, mass evictions of RS and Roberts and the pushing of market rate beyond possible limits to have long term roots in this community; including those as we now know allowed for 3000 rent stabilized apartments to increase to $8000+ per Semester in a shady NYU John Sexton real estate sham.Those in leadership positions forgot that leadership is action, not words. Their words unmatched with actions sank New Yorkers. We need a new action oriented leadership that has residents of New York in its heart as a driving force rather than dollar signs in their pupils guiding their blinded ways. In the political history of New York this ranks as one of the biggest failures.

What a telling photo. We know where Quinn and Garodnick stood with their real estate bias, but this puts Schumer smack in the middle of a Quinn Garodnick sandwich. Doesn't seem he would be a good source for tenants on which to lean.

Schumer is a blowhard who loves to hold weekly Sunday press conferences (when he knows the news is usually slow ) and then does little or nothing about the issues he raises in those press conferences.Maloney should have retired years ago. She is an East Coast version of Nancy Pelosi- she and Pelosi have always, and still, blame George Bush for all of our problems

“As far as when I was living there, NYU basically told us to disregard all info about the situation,” said Andrew Cardenas, a student. “All our rent was paid directly to NYU and even super-related work requests were always made through NYU, never using the Stuy Town services.” [NYU News]

We are at the most crucial crossroads of our existence now that PCVST is about to go on the block and probably be gobbled up by greedy, avaricious opportunists who would throw us under the bus and destroy our homes. This is an even bigger crisis than when the vile Tishman Speyer took over, and it may very well be an illegal transaction that is about to take place between CWCap and it's owner, Fortress. Where are our elected "representatives" who paid us so much lip service to get our votes?They had better come out from hiding because we WILL remember them come election time. Remember what happened to whatsername Quinn? The voters kicked her to the curb and we can do it to any of those who think they can fuck with us.

Here s a scary scenario: NYU steps in as an investor in the new consortium that buys StuyTown. They start moving students in en masse, drving more residents out. They take over entire buildings and rename their portion NYU Town. Once they drive enough people out, they move their students to facilities elsewhere, and start to demolish entire buildings to build new 60 story NYU Condos for wealthy parents to use for their own kids then to rent to future students at sky high rates. Meanwhile the remainiing buildings are gradually turned all market rate,,or demolished for new condos, parceled out to other developers.

12:45 am exactly! Quinn is so void of integrity she is trying to blame animal rights groups even calling on an FBI inquiry on them. Quinn believed her REBNY real estate purchase of the mayor's office should have gotten her the result she bought, the mayor's office. She thinks voters don't count only money does. I am proud of NY for showing politicians voters count more than their musical chair game of buying political offices! We didn't vote for Quinn because we didn't want anymore back room deals, third term mayors, and Bloomberg agenda. She is so delusional if she doesn't see the true reason she lost. Herself.

Who made the NYU deal allowing NYU to profit off thousands of residential PCV ST apartments turning our residential community into a commodity, running a for profit business in a residential zone - and which politicians, board members, attorneys, orchestrated the deal? We know Compass Rock Tom Feeney oversaw the construction of thousands of the dorm rooms per DOB records. Who cut the deal and who received and who is still receiving money from the deal? How many regulations and laws were violated in this deal?

I don't know what is that Chuckie and Maloney can do. For that matter, I don't know what de Blasio can do. I read that the TA wants us to go to City Hall on the day of the auction but I don't know why we would go there. The mayor probably gets the message of our frustration if we have a demonstration which maximizes our participation (meaning closer to Stuy Town). Could it be that de Blasio was asked to attend a demonstration at Stuy Town and already declined?

But I still don't know what we are demonstrating for/wanting the mayor to do. Is it just a "we're the tenants and we're upset" or is there some type of reaction we are attempting to create? TA? Hello TA?

I'm not a lawyer but here are some of my concerns about the auction.

The legal paperwork of the CMBS includes language that allows the special servicer (CW) the ability to acquire the asset for its "fair value", its called the Fair Value Purchase Option. This clause was in CMBS deals of that era but is no longer included in new issuance. The question is whether the mezz auction constitutes an acceptable clearing event for determining 'fair value'. I'd think if we wanted to stop the sale next month, we'd get that question answered (and other related to an insider sale)prior to the auction.

Demonstrating on the day of the auction? I'm at a loss for what that does. The auction will occur and title is expected to change hands. Everything after that becomes a game of trying to undo a real estate transaction. That should be simple to undo, right? (sarcasm)

If the TA and Dan wanted to halt Fortress they would commence inquiry on the NYU deal. Why is the TA response a too little too late badly-advised photo op rally rather than an investigation? Same MO as the mid-lease increases.

An old joke but still pertinent today. Chucky Schumer would come to the opening of an envelope.

On a personal note as someone who has been active in PCVST regarding afffordable housing issues for at least two decades, I have never felt so helpless before the power of the Real Estate/ Financial Services Industry which promotes the rapid increase (the last 5 years) in the percentage here of the amount of students and transient tenants. Only they can afford the dormfication of housing stock (old and new) and the chain store businesses, banks, “Bro” bars and expensive “foodie” restaurants that they love so well. The majority of longer term tenants here have been lethargic, clueless and ignorant but this empathy free demographic is especially depressing as they seem to be taking over not just here but everywhere in NYC.

I don't know if it's clear but June 13 is the date scheduled for the foreclosure sale for the mezzanine debt, after which CWCapital will own the property. After THAT comes the outright sale of the property, which may take months.

If you go to the TA facebook page you'll see that John Marsh is beginning the kind of dialogue that needs to happen. I'm going to respond here as if I were on that page. First, John, I notice you completely left out any reference to the deal with Brookfield. Why? If you drop the deal with Brookfield I'll join you again. Second, I can't abide the division between your new stabilizers and the older residents. Thinking in these kinds of terms is something a politician would do. A tenant association needs to think in terms of of principles that serve the needs of all the long term tenants. I subscribe to affordability. I subscribe to maintaining the open spaces. Keep building these principles, drop the alliance with Brookfield, serve the needs of all the long term tenants, call for rallies and I'll be there.

STR 7:48 I have to tell you that that may be 100% WRONG. The 6/13 is a mezz auction BUT it may allow CW to collapse the senior loan without going to market for a sale. That's what all of the chatter has been about in real estate worlds. CW may be using the foreclosure to, essentially, buy the asset for its parent WITHOUT SALE but rather via mezz auction.

It's important, very important to really understand what may happen next month. Fortress is lining up its money right now in hopes of getting through the auction with an outcome of ownership. Please re-read the news threads again with this in mind.

read that story , understand that in the language of the CMBS deal, there is a clause called 'fair value purchase option'. The clause has been tested already (law favorable to CW) but not in an attempt to acquire such a large asset (esp. via mezz foreclosure auction). Expect litigation if CW does enact the clause BUT... it's then a reactionary game of lawyers (bondholders vs bondholder-CW).

"If the TA and Dan wanted to halt Fortress they would commence inquiry on the NYU deal. Why is the TA response a too little too late badly-advised photo op rally rather than an investigation? Same MO as the mid-lease increases."

Damned right! I hate to admit it, but I do not trust the TA and I absolutely loathe Garodnick. I wouldn't trust him any further than I could throw him and he seems to have the TA leadership wrapped around his little finger.

According to the FT, Fortress "is sitting on losses of $8m on an experimental investment in Bitcoin. The company’s annual report revealed that it bought $20m of the virtual currency in the final months of last year, making it the first mainstream investment company to list Bitcoin among the assets on its balance sheet."

The value of its position was already underwater by the end of December, however, and the price of Bitcoin has continued to slip this year amid scares over the underlying technology and the bankruptcy of what was once the largest virtual currency exchange.

By buying the currency for its own account, Fortress not only places a small bet on its future value but also learns more about the practicality of using Bitcoin as a financial instrument in the future and about the potential for business built around virtual currency.

The company deemed Bitcoin too speculative, however, to put in any of the funds it manages on behalf of other investors.

Good. Because as of year end, Fortress valued its stash of Bitcoin at $16.3 million at the end of December. Since then Bitcoin has fallen by a further one-quarter so far this year, cutting the value of the stake to $12.1m at mid-Friday prices. The bankruptcy of the formerly biggest Bitcoin exchange will do that.

As for Fortress, don't cry for the asset manager: "The experimental stake in Bitcoin represents a fraction of Fortress’s $2.6bn balance sheet. The company manages $61.8bn in assets and posted a 121 per cent rise in net income to $484m for 2013."

Oh well: on to the next gigamomentum (to borrow a popular prefix) investment which sophisticated investors buy into and just because the dumber money always chases on their coattails,

makes them believe what incredible investors they are. So for anyone following in Fortress' footsteps: go for it, just don't come back to check on your money "in a few years." It will have long since been "disappeared." Come to think of it, just like those millions of Mt. Gox bitcoins...

More on NYU putting greed of profit over education in today's NYTimes.

A group of university faculty members wrote a public letter calling Mr. Lipton’s support of Mr. Sexton “an intransigence that is as threatening to N.Y.U.’s survival as the scandals whose clear impact you deny.” The letter went on to say that Mr. Lipton’s approval of the university’s global ambitions were motivated more by the bottom line for N.Y.U. — which has raised nearly $6 billion during his tenure — than education.

“Any school that profiteers so avidly is sure to be renowned, not as ‘a world-class residential research university,’ ” they wrote, “but as a global clip joint with an academic logo; and yet, like the Gilded Age inequity at N.Y.U., that sprawling operation has your full support.”

Whatever the outcome of this crisis for N.Y.U., it is a case study that should be examined for years to come by its students — both in New York City and Abu Dhabi.

And for those who love a good conspiracy theory, just google the Council on Foreign Relations and you'll find a wealth of good old Bilderburg/Tri-Lateral Commission, New World Order, Stanley Kubrick style conspiracy theories.

I don't necessarily go in on that sort of thing, but it does lead one to wonder where Dan Garodnick's loyalties are. He's not just a "regular guy." These are the most powerful people in the US. Even our congresswoman and Senator aren't currently on the CFR. Bill Clinton, Dick Cheney, Charles Krauthammer, Mort Zuckerman, Elie Wiesel, Michael Bloomberg, James Baker, Howard Baker, various Kennedys, Jerry Speyer, you'll recognize quite a few names.

Yelp sucks then. Where to post? I posted a review on mid lease increase, the sneaky practices at signing... they throw in the charges of a few things 3 days before signing and of course one is homeless if it's not signed...

I've not heard about separate meters recently. There was some talk, over a year ago or two, about metering for electric usage in apartments, however. If that would become fact, then tenants would be paying for their electricity.

oh the insanity 10:51 - no one ever said there was an "audit form"! the poster cleared that up long ago saying there is no "audit form".

i went to the dhcr office and i got my rent history just like the person said i could. and yes, according to my rent history i am being overcharged in two different ways. i will be filing an overcharge complaint when i can go down to the dhcr offices next.

it does work. you just need to use it properly.

another person posting said the TPU unit does audits and renovation work audits. maybe that is what you want.

figure out which you need, dhcr, or tpu, and then use that tool properly and it will work.

you are using a screwdriver to hammer a nail. you need to use the correct tools and use them properly.

i have no renovation work. but i have a lot of unexplained mci charges. dhcr said that is what i need audited. all our needs are unique.

dhcr said the first thing everyone should get is a "rent history" on your apartment. so start with that and stop asking for things that do not exist then getting mad at tenants who are trying to help us. they helped me.

as i was typing my previous comment it occurred to me. i have learned a lot from str and the comments - so thank you str and those commenting. why isn't the tenant association teaching every tenant how to get a rent history? it was actually easy and very informative. why doesn't the tenant association here tell tenants about doing it?

10:07 CW pays property taxes. In fact the tax bill here is one of the most expensive in the city. The J-51 allowed a partial abatement of taxes. Relative to what is paid in taxes, the abatement is small. That said, Metlife took the credit and the owners must abide by the conditions (Roberts case).

Follow this link to see the property tax for the ownership. Property bills are typically paid semi-annually.

http://webapps.nyc.gov:8084/CICS/fin1/find001I

Place one of addresses in ST or PCV and you should come to parcel 1-972-1 ; PCV St Owner LP. You'll see a long list of searchable items; click on Feb Quarterly Tax Bill. I hope this answers your question. (Note: the quarterly bill is actually a semi-annual bill so multiply x2 the amount you see).

Would be great if I could upload the sounds coming from upstairs apartment - and post for future tenants. It's as if an elephant lives above us, and it scrapes itself across the uncarpeted floors all day and night.

And yes, reported this, and yes, LL says they have carpets.. THEY have no carpets and if they had they removed after fake inspection.

Does anyone know how to see the financials? We are interested in buying our apartment but no one seems to be able to show us the financials on the complex so we don't know what we would be buying into. Can anyone tell me where we can see that before we go support a rally for tenants to buy? What are we buying into?

If you mean to ask about the operating expenses and taxes for the buildings, that a different story. The link to the tax bill is above. Divide the tax bill by units for simple math. If you want to add all the room in the complex and divide by that, have at it.

As for operating expenses, you'll need to do some work. Each commercial entity (stuy Town is considered commercial for this matter) must file an annual operating and expense report to the City. The easiest way to see what the expenses are for STPCV is to go to propertyshark.com. They give you one free search. The info you're looking for will be in the report (it may be a year late but there is something there for you to use). Please visit the site and report results here (my free search has been exhausted).

I think it's more like they're not paying them because they're bogus. No one I know thinks they're discriminating.

YOu KNOW WE all pay them now, right? or are supposed to pay them. Neighbors moved in a few months ago, renovated apartment and they're being charged and they showed me the paperwork and lease stating such. Let's all stop saying half of us are not paying.

Bring your potential lease to a lawyer to review. You will not regret it. The leases are bogus with charges you will incur after having moved in. How nice of them. Then, in the middle of a one year lease, a huge increase in your rent.

Is this allowable from the NYC department of Housing since this property pays no tax and receives J51 exemption for the past 75 years? Anyone?

I posted the original suggestion. I checked with Brian kavanagh's office about auditing renovations. The TPU doesn't accept individual suggestions for audits. Audit decisions are based on data collected. Meaning that if a particular building or landlord received numerous complaints, then the TPU would perform an audit.

3:37 it brings clarity to another way the TA has failed Stuyvesant Town Peter Cooper. They should have either done so, having audits on PCVST on behalf of their members or they should have educated all residents on how to do it for themselves so the many many residents could have then collectively been the necessary "numerous complaints" received by the TPU to have the rent roll audited and have overcharged tenants get their money back.

The Tenants Association had us sign a pledge in December that they would perform these things with all the NYC agencies on behalf of tenants.

Now the Tenants Association is complaining about an overpriced bid by Fortress that has pushed the Tenant Association away from the bidding when the Tenant Association themselves created the overpriced Fortress bid with among other things, the inflated rent roll that has gone UNCHECKED.

Hmmmmm, we now agree then there is no such thing as an 'AUDIT'. If I'm a landlord and I now charge 5 x rent due to new floors, walls and a crappy kitchen with a new cheesy faucet, I'm good right? as long as 30% of the building doesn't complain?

Then we need to stop telling people to bombard DHCR and that it works to complain about the overcharged rent. There is no such complaint center for the RS overpriced apartments. Take it or leave it. Let's stop telling people to complain for no reason but to complain. DHCR does shit and you know it. There is no oversight of these practices and we all know it.

The TA would fight the rent increases and demand an audit on repairs, renovations if they could and it would matter.

I'm betting that's a fight no one can win and they know it. DHCR is in bed with RE investors, Landlords and developers. They're not easily giving up any information and there is no way they are lowering your rent or fighting off the MCIs. If the TA could do this, they would now and then. And no, I'm not a member.

There is no "audit form' as several posters have already said a million times! Stop calling it an "audit form"! It is called an overcharge complaint form and we just picked ours up because we are sure we are being overcharged too.

Until There Is Silence No More

The Tenants Association and our councilman Dan Garodnick have mysteriously remained silent about a purported incident that occurred on July 12: the mugging by a group of individuals of someone right by Peter Cooper Village, along 20th Street.

The TA is basically done. Tenants can complain, but any action is negligible. The TA is effectively dead.

----------

"We'll be introducing a new process to identify registered dogs thus enabling Public Safety Officers to clearly approach offending dog owners. The registration will hang from the leash handle; clearly identifying the dog as registered.

"If the dog is not registered by May 1; a summons will be issued at the point of contact. If we learn the dog owner is not a resident, they will be escorted off the property."

Rick Hayduk, CEO and General Manager of PCVST. Letter to Barry Shapiro, February 2016.

STR here: I have been around since the inception of this dog policy and I have NEVER seen anyone escorted out of ST or PCV with their non-lanyard dog. But I have seen, many times, a dog owner from outside, and his/her dog, casually walking through ST or PCV.

THINKING of Renting in PCVST?

Read Yelp reviews to find out what it's like living here. Please note: All apartments are currently "rent-stabilized" but that doesn't prevent apartments from going up to 4K to 6K a month and even higher. How does this happen? Ask our politicians! Fact: Now less than half of the complex's apartments have the old rents and it's getting worse year by year--or better if you are the Real Estate Board of New York!

The Other Yelp Reviews

Yelp can be tricky and bounce reviews for a variety of reasons, like being a member and posting just one review. Very often, however, these reviews hold important truths about what's being reviewed. READ THESE TOO.

BICYCLES, MOPEDS, SCOOTERS, ETC.

Of course, "private property" but "public access" - whatever that means! And if a part of it is public access, do the rules of the city apply to our roads and sidewalks? Or does anything give because this complex is "private property"? Who comes here in case of a fire in one of our buildings? The Stuy Town Fire Brigade?

Hint: Look both ways if you are in the complex. Look on the ground, too!

61.03 Control of dogs and other animals to prevent nuisance. (a) A person who owns, possesses or controls a dog, cat or other animal shall not permit the animal to commit a nuisance on a sidewalk of any public place, on a floor, wall, stairway, sidewalk, lawn, garden or roof of any public or private premises used in common by the public, or on a fence, wall [or], stairway or entranceway of a building abutting on a public place

Banned & Oversize Dog Breeds in Stuy Town

Looks like there is some difficulty in enforcing the ban on certain dog breeds allowed inside Stuy Town/Peter Cooper Village. Somehow pitbulls and pitbull mixes have been registered in STPCV and are allowed to be freely walked about the grounds! Registered dogs in the complex are max 50 pounds. Total, if there is more than one! More than two, it's illegal. It's going to get worse, and, face it, Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village will never be like it once was.

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Read it and Weep

Current Value of ST/PCV

Was 5.4 Billion Dollars when Tishman Speyer bought the place.Became 1.7 Billion Dollars when Tishman Speyer left, with their tail between their legs. Of course, tenants now have to make up the loss.

Ex-landlord

Rob Speyer

1947 Stuy Town Plaque Honoring Met Life Chairman F.H. Ecker (Removed in 2002 and never seen again)

"... who with the vision of experience and the energy of youth conceived and brought into being this project, and others like it, that families of moderate means might live in health, comfort and dignity in park-like communities and that a pattern might be set of private enterprise productively devoted to public service."

I am writing on behalf of everyone at Tishman Speyer to express how honored we are to become part of your outstanding community. We are a business with deep roots in New York, a true love of our city and a great respect for the neighborhoods that make it special. We are committed to maintaining the unique character and environment that have made Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town such a wonderful place to live for so long. We look forward to providing you an extraordinary level of service and attentiveness that will be the source of pride and satisfaction for the entire community.

Neighborhood Recommendations

New to Stuy Town/Peter Cooper Village? Here are some basic recommendations.

Best supermarket: Associated on 14th St. between 1st Ave. and Ave A. The cheapest prices, fantastic weekly sales, very affordable lunches; solid, responsive management, but earthy. Some of the young female cashiers have attitude to spare, though. May be too far for Peter Cooper residents.

Best gym: Don't waste your money on the Oval Fitness Gym. Instead go to the earthy but real Asser Levy Recreational Center, right above 23rd St on Asser Levy Place (near the FDR Drive). $75 for a year's membership; seniors are almost free. Contains seasonal indoor and outdoor swimming pools, ping-pong table, two pool tables. Called by some rich people who wouldn't get caught going there "the prison gym," and you know why.

A Stuy Town favorite is Lenz's on 20 St. between the 20 St. Loop. The way New York used to be. Be careful of unwanted "pepper" in your food, however. Lenz's got a B grade rating and was temporarily closed down due to an order from the Health Department. Bruno's on First Avenue is more upscale, with a greater selection of food items (higher-priced, too), but was closed down temporarily by the Health Department. Stuy Town's own cafe was closed, too! And not because of all the dogs that hover and piss outside.

Gracefully has two locations, but we prefer for its size the one on 1st Ave. Prices are high and reflect the new tenants that are currently renting Stuy Town and Peter Cooper apartments. ("Do you have a credit card?") We like Gracefully's lunch specials, which are somewhat affordable.

I priced the CVS on 1st Ave near 14st. The non-aerosol hairspray was 20 cents above CVS' own website price, and one of the highest in NY. (Yes, I have hair.) You can save at least a dollar or more buying at another place. So beware. Look around for a better deal on all your items.

I love warm Quaker Oats in the morning. Gristedes is not the place to get it, nor is Associated, though their price is less. Look around!

Macular Degeneration Support Group

If you are currently diagnosed with Macular Degeneration, the New York Eye & Ear Infirmary is offering a support group for you. Conveniently located next to the Peter Cooper Village Stuyvesant Town apartment complex, our group offers the opportunity to share stories with other members, listen to expert guest speakers, and learn coping strategies to reduce stress. Our group runs on the first Wednesday of every month and we would enjoy seeing you there.
Please contact Baptiste Nicolas, Social Work Assistant at 212-979-4105 for further information and to see if this group is right for you!